Struggling with full snow dumps, the City of Trois-Rivières has decided to stop clearing many of its sidewalks for the rest of the winter.
The municipality, which has already received the amount of snow it expected to receive throughout the season, made the announcement this week.
“We will stop snow removal from sidewalks on local streets, with the exception of downtown areas, as well as around schools, hospitals and main streets,” said Mikaël Morrissette, spokesperson for the City. . “We are fully aware that having to review the level of snow removal service is not optimal. »
He pointed out that some local streets already have few or no sidewalks and on-street parking is often prohibited there, leaving room for pedestrians to navigate the roadway. “Where we are, we had to set priorities,” he said.
The three snow dumps used by the City of Trois-Rivières are filling up much faster than usual. “The J-Réal-Desrosiers site has almost reached its full capacity, while those of the Industrial and Bellefeuille sites are respectively 75 and 90% filled”, indicates the municipality, which speaks of “exceptional situation”.
Mikaël Morrissette pointed out that the city hall had a project to expand one of these depots, but that Quebec has not yet given the green light.
The organization Piétons Québec denounced the decision.
“It’s really unfortunate and frustrating to see that not clearing the sidewalks is one of the solutions put forward by the City,” said Sandrine Cabana-Degani, leader of the association. “It sends the message that access to the sidewalks is optional, whereas it is an essential development for mobility. »
Mme Cabana-Degani stressed that this decision puts the safety of people who choose to walk in the street at risk.
Trois-Rivières will also try to increase the number of sections in which the snow from the roadway is blown onto the land, rather than loaded into trucks.